


day 7: giving trust

by orphan_account



Series: the twelve days of shipmas (giving edition) [7]
Category: UNIQ (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Assassins & Hitmen, Alternate Universe - Royalty, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-20
Updated: 2016-12-20
Packaged: 2018-09-10 15:58:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 936
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8923375
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: trust is a precious thing but seungyoun can’t afford to treat it that way. to him, it’s just another commodity and one that can fetch some high stakes indeed.he manufactures it, nurtures it and when the time is right, picks the fruit that it has reaped. warship blueprints, pass codes to impenetrable safes, crowns inset with jewels that glitter like stars.this assignment is not like those.





	

**Author's Note:**

> twelve days of shipmas challenge for u-n-i-fics.tumblr.com
> 
> full prompt list on my tumblr

“they say it would be easier if he passed away now.”

“hmmm?” seungyoun looks up inquiringly from a corner by the door where he’s been sharpening his knife with a stone, ears alert to the footsteps petering out in the hall outside. he’s certain he hasn’t inferred yixuan’s true meaning wrongly but he’d do himself no favours by appearing more intelligent than his appearance and job would suggest.

“my father,” yixuan clarifies, fine brow like bone china wrinkled in a manner not befitting the royal prince, the lamp by his desk casting shadow onto half of his face. he puts down the calligraphy brush with his elegant fingers, pressing his fingers together in a steeple. in his silk bedrobes, he looks every part the picture of the court’s hopes and dreams, the educated and wise heir to the emperor currently in stagnant slumber, “my advisors have been talking and they believe it would be best if father,” his eye twitches imperceptibly, “were to pass on soon. apparently the sooner i can succeed him, the better. sentimentality and love according to them, is useless in the murky abyss of court politics.” a dry bark passes his lips, “i disagreed.”

“that seems to be a habit of yours.” seungyoun teases lightly, proud that he doesn’t twitch at the mention of the king and yixuan receives the banter with a good-natured smile.

“chalk it up to age and experience,” he says simply as if he were decades older and wiser than anyone else in the court. sometimes, seungyoun is fooled.

“you know it’s no fun when you make the joke instead of me,” seungyoun pretends to be hurt by the prince’s words, sheathing the knife in his belt with a sharp thrust rather melodramatically, “whatever else shall i live for now, your highness?”

yixuan chuckles at his antics and his pose relaxes a little, the tension in his shoulders lessening noticeably despite the poor light, “perhaps your actual duty? to protect me, i thought. body and soul, i remember you vowing.”

“oh yes, i nearly forgot.” seungyoun leans over and props his chin up in the v created by cupped hands, elbows digging into his knees, “i guess your steadily declining memory is rubbing off on me.”

“be serious,” yixuan chides but he’s laughing all the same although the twist downwards at the side of his mouths may bear a trace of bittersweetness, “otherwise i’ll return you to the court of kim for what a fine gift you turned out to be.”

“please your highness,” seungyoun ignores the panic rising in his chest at the thought of returning. covering it with a blustering bravado. half of it is in fear of the consequences he might face if forced back to his home country. the other half thinks of the inevitable lack of yixuan in his life if he were to go and his insides immediately cramp up, “you’d be lost without me.”

“and probably dead too,” yixuan adds in dryly, “it’s three assassinations you’ve saved me from now, am i correct?”

“depends if you’re counting the snake in your room, that could have been an accident entirely.”

“i severely doubt snakes could make their own way into the interior court.”

“four then,” seungyoun grins in the way he knows makes him look endearing, eyes and nose scrunched up adorably and dimples peppering his cheek, “not that anyone is counting.”

“i am,” yixuan inclines his head, naturally dignified in a way that only a royal upbringing could produce, “i believe in - “

“repaying debts, i know.” seungyoun shifts uncomfortably at the reminder, playful spark fizzling out a little. yixuan studies him critically and he tries not to breathe in case his inner thoughts somehow escape and fill the room, “forgive me.”

“there’s no need for forgiveness,” yixuan smiles wanly after what seems like an eternity and seungyoun can finally let his breath go in a whoosh, “i’d hardly hold a grudge against someone i trust with my life.”

“high praise indeed!” seungyoun perhaps overdoes it with the chipperness in his response, disproportionate for the late hour and serious topic but covering up his unease, “you flatter me too much, highness.” he curses himself mentally for the slip-up, something usually foreign to him in his professional capacity. perhaps the strain of the job is getting to him, the stakes being higher and the load greater this time around.

“i never flatter,” yixuan tells him as he stands up from his chair, ready to retire for the night. seungyoun silently arises and helps him remove his outer robes, draping the silk over the nearest chair and snuffing out the desk’s candle whilst at it, “i merely relay the truth.”

“well many thanks either way,” seungyoun murmurs lowly in the quiet and takes pride in the gooseflesh that pricks the bare skin of yixuan’s arms as a result, “i’ll uphold it as much as i can.”

“i’m sure you will,” yixuan settles himself under the luxurious covers as seungyoun climbs onto his cot, stationed near the entrance to ward off any possible intruders. his gaze is inscrutable under the cover of darkness, “goodnight seungyoun.”

“same to you, highness.” seungyoun replies with composure but lies backwards in a rush, betraying his hastiness. he stares at the ceiling and batters back at the rising tide of fear he feels threatening to flood his chest. he had been so certain that he could handle this assignment with seasoned ease when delivered that fateful scroll. after all, there had only been three steps.

protect the prince, earn his trust, kill his father.

he’d never been this wrong before.


End file.
